


Standing Among You.

by HolyKingWasteLand



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Kids, Angry Klaus Hargreeves, Broken Bones, But they grow up each chapter, Don't touch Vanya and you'll be fine, Gen, He's furious, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Klaus Hargreeves-centric, Not Beta Read, Swearing, Vanya Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Vanya Hargreeves-centric, Vomiting, We Die Like Men, best siblings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-16
Updated: 2019-03-16
Packaged: 2019-11-18 21:31:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18126746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HolyKingWasteLand/pseuds/HolyKingWasteLand
Summary: Klaus and Vanya are one in the same with their struggles, of their siblings love, to their fathers/siblings abuse. Here's some much needed Klaus and Vanya bonding and teamwork.Chapters:[1] : If They Stand Behind You, Give Them Protection.[2] : If They Stand Beside You, Give Them Respect.[3] : If They Stand In Front Of You, Watch Their Back.[4] : And If They Stand Against You, Show Them No Mercy.(Idea/Prompt Credit: rpmindthinker on tumblr)





	1. If They Stand Behind You, Give Them Protection.

Vanya flips through her book and watches Klaus dance around the kitchen to "I think we're alone now". She smiles and puts her book down on the bench, moving over to dance along with her brother. Klaus opens his eyes and grins at her, taking her hand, and he spins her around.

They dance and dance and dance, laughing and singing along to the song badly, all is well.

Until it's not.

Vanya bumps into the counter and knocks off a glass of water. Time almost freezes as they watch it collide with the tiled floor, and  _shatter._ Klaus and Vanya make scared eye contact, but seeing her fear, Klaus quickly turns into big brother mode. He turns off the music and smiles easily at her, whispering that it's going to be okay as they hear thundering footsteps boom down the staircase.

They both recognise those footsteps; Dad.

Klaus quickly gets on the floor and tries to clean it up as much as he can before Reginald storms into the room. 

"What is the meaning of this, Number Four?" Reginald demands, his voice loud and intimidating. His eyes flicker over to Vanya and Klaus quickly speaks up.

"I-I accidentally.. broke this glass." Klaus swallows thickly as their father's eyes narrow. A few long strides and Reginald is towering over Klaus.

"Stand up." Klaus quickly follows his command. "Follow me, Number Four." Klaus' eyes widen and he almost tries to speak, but a hand grabs a fist full of his shirt and he's being dragged from the room.

Vanya steps forward. "Dad-"

Reginald stops and turns around, Klaus gesturing minutely for her to  _shut up._ "Spit it out, Number Seven!"

"U-um-" She looks down at Klaus who's still telling her not to speak and she hangs her head. "Nothing, sorry sir." She mumbles softly, too afraid of their father.

He sniffs and continues dragging Klaus out of the room, and then out the front door.

Vanya watches with wide eyes, too terrified to do anything else.

 

* * *

 

They arrive at the mausoleum and Klaus can't find it in himself to fight back. It's better him than Vanya.

Reginald tosses him into the cold and dark crypt, and Klaus just sits on the floor, staring up at his father pleadingly. "This will hopefully teach you to be more careful, and to  _hone_ your abilities." Comes his father's cold tone.

There's no getting out of this. He takes in a shaky breath and waits until his dad's gone and locked the door before he breaks down. He hyperventilates and curls up against the wall, he can already hear the voices, he has since they got there.

" _Help us_.." They cry, and Klaus covers his ears. 

Stay strong Klaus.

For Vanya.

 

* * *

 

Reginald comes back for him two days later. Klaus hasn't slept.

"Come along, Number Four." Reginald mutters, annoyed. Klaus scampers up and out of the crypt, not making eye contact with any of the ghosts of his father.

They drive back in silence and then enter the house, just as noiselessly.

"Go to your room. The others are doing training, and will call you for dinner." Reginald commands and Klaus nods slowly, the light drained from his eyes, just like every time he comes back from that place.

He drags himself upstairs. Bloody knuckles and nails; blood-shot eyes; limbs as heavy as lead; and bleeding scratches up and down his arms from where he's kept himself sane, using his own nails.

Klaus creaks open his own door and sits down on the edge of his bed, looking much older than ten with that look in his eyes. He stares down at his shaking hands, only looking up when he hears footsteps.

Vanya stands at his door, her eyes wide and teary as she waits to be allowed in.

And Klaus smiles.

His sister bursts into tears and runs over to him, taking his hands with her own shaking ones. She sniffles and cries as Klaus brushes away her bangs gently. "It's okay sis, it's not as bad as it looks." She's got her eyes focused on his knuckles, the skin is split and what once was bleeding, is now scabbed over. She gently tugs him up from the bed and he follows her to the bathroom.

She washes his hands with great care, not using soap for the fear that it would hurt him, but he barely bats an eye as she rubs his hands under the warm water.

After his hands are clean, she bandages them up along with antiseptic cream to stop any infection from growing. Then she takes care of his arms, and checks him over for any other injuries. He smiles all through this, and once she's done, he pulls her into a hug.

"Thank you," He says softly, it echoes around the bathroom, but there's no one else here to hear.

She shakes her head. "You wouldn't have been hurt if it wasn't for me!" She cries, but Klaus just pats her hair.

"Nah, dad reacts badly to everything." Better him than her.

Vanya looks up at him with teary eyes, an apology on her lips. "I'm s-sorry," She sniffs. His lips split into a grin and he hugs her again.

"No need for tears, Van, I'll always be here to protect you." He promises.

And from that day forth, Vanya has an undying hatred for their father.


	2. If They Stand Beside You, Give Them Respect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Vomiting, Broken Bones.

They're thirteen when Five disappears, and they don't even get to celebrate their fourteenth together because Ben dies almost a week later.

Everyone is on edge around each other, Allison barely speaks to any of them except Luther; Diego's stutter is back so he doesn't talk to anyone except mom like at  _all;_ Luther is dad's little soldier so no one really speaks to him (except Allison); so that just leaves Klaus and Vanya.

They're close, and definitely grew closer after Klaus took the blame all those years ago.

Klaus and Vanya are playing cards in his bedroom when the bell rings for training to begin. Klaus gives her sympathetic eyes and jumps off the bed, rushing downstairs, not in the mood to be yelled at for being late.

Diego is waiting downstairs and Allison and Luther join them quickly. They all go to their regular meet-up place (the bottom of the staircase) and await Reginald's call of, "And- GO!"

 

* * *

 

Klaus breathes heavily, he's not alright, this training is too intense for him. He's not strong like the other three, he doesn't have stamina. He presses a hand to his mouth and tries to swallow down the oncoming nausea.

"Number Four!" Reginald growls. "Get back into formation!"

The teen in question shakes his hand at his father and doubles over, squeezing his eyes shut, trying not to throw up his guts. Ah- too late.

He throws up onto the wooden floorboards, leaning against the wall to keep himself upright. Once he's finished, a tear drips down his cheek and he pants. Reginald stares disappointed and angrily at him.

"Pathetic Number Four." He shakes his head and turns away. Klaus wobbles and grabs onto his father's arm to balance himself out again. Big mistake.

Reginald smacks his arm around into Klaus' chest and throws the boy down onto the ground. Klaus falls and lands awkwardly on his right hand, he hears a crunch and then he lets out a loud cry of pain. The others watch with varying degrees of sympathy, but none step up against their father. Tears come to his eyes and he quickly stands up and scampers away.

He runs off to his room and sees Vanya laying there reading a book, he whimpers and gains her attention. Something in her eyes shifts from pleasant to dangerous. She jumps up and takes one look at him before sitting him down. "Stay here, I'll go get mom," She says gently, cupping Klaus' cheek. He pushes into her hand with a whine and nods helplessly.

She runs off and comes back with Grace and a glass of water. Grace sits beside her son and carefully checks his wrist. It's a clean break, so she just wraps it in a strong gauze and tells him not to use it. He nods and she leaves after pressing a kiss to his hair, very motherly.

Vanya hands him the water and he uses his left hand to awkwardly drink it. "Thank you," He whispers, voice hoarse. She nods once, the dangerous look in her eyes hasn't left.

"Who did this?" She asks, no room to argue.

"Dad.." Klaus murmurs, letting his wild hair fall into his face. She takes the glass from him and puts it on the dresser before wrapping him in a protective hug.

"And the others?"

"Stood by, too afraid to do anything." He admits, knowing not to test Vanya when she's like this. She nods and stands up, releasing him from her hold. Before he can say anything, she's out of the room and starting down the stairs. 

Klaus follows after her quickly and sends his siblings a helpless look as she storms up to their eldest brother.

Vanya steps up in front of Luther, baring her teeth at him, her eyes narrowed furiously. "You just let dad hurt him?" She yells, anger flooding through her whole being. Luther takes a step back and Allison steps in front of him, Diego lingers near Klaus behind Vanya. "You just- You stood by and let him throw Klaus to the ground?"

"Dad has his reasons-"

"Reasons my ass Luther! Klaus has a broken wrist!" She screams, feeling something coiling in her stomach. Luther looks down at his little brother, something in his eyes shift, but he remains neutral. Vanya's eyes are  _furious._ She inhales and goes to scream some more, but arms around her waist makes it all drop away. 

She turns and looks over her shoulder to see Klaus smiling at her. "Let's go, c'mon sis." He pulls her away gently, pleading, and like she's in a trance, she follows him upstairs.

They sit down on Klaus' bed and Klaus rests his head on her shoulder.

"Thanks for standing up for me, but you don't have to." He says softly, and Vanya laughs, rolling her eyes.

"Of course I do, you're my big brother, and sometimes.. people need a scream in the right direction." She smiles and Klaus chuckles. "I... I would hope that Luther and the others would defend you but.." She clenches her hands into fists, they shake from her anger. "He just stood by and  _watched._ "

Klaus nods sadly. There's a long stretch of silence and Klaus moves his wrist, hissing in pain.

"Are you okay?" She asks, concerned.

"I will be," He says honestly, cradling his wrapped up hand. "We will be." He nods again, and she nods with him.

"Yeah, we will be, Klaus."


	3. If They Stand In Front Of You, Watch Their Back.

They're seventeen when Klaus first overdoses.

No one comes for him in the hospital, he lays on the bed all alone for an hour until they receive a call from Reginald that says they can discharge him. Against their better judgement, they do so. Klaus exits the hospital, a bandage on his arm from the needles they had to give him.

God.

God didn't like him.

He'd never go to heaven, hell, or even purgatory.

He'll just be here.

He stands still on the side of the road and then laughs bitterly. No one came for him. Not dear old dad, not his siblings, definitely not Pogo or mom. He finishes laughing and sobers up before he starts walking home.

 

* * *

 

He enters the house and it's quiet like usual. Dear old dad walks into the foyer from his private room, he looks disappointed.

"Overdose?" Klaus nods once, his eyes are empty. "Pity." Reginald walks back inside his room and Klaus smiles angrily. Luther and Diego are on a mission and Allison is.. somewhere.

"Klaus?" Vanya calls from the top of the stairs. He looks up and tears fill his eyes. He remembers why he's still here; for her.

"Vanya." He whispers, his voice cracking and catching in his throat. Her eyes fill with sadness and she runs down the staircase, standing a lot smaller than him.

Without saying anything else, she pulls him into a tight hug. They stay like that for a while.

 

* * *

 

That night, there's a loud crash downstairs. Klaus jumps out of bed and rushes to Vanya's room to check that she's alright. She looks up at him sleepily but quickly becomes alert. They creep downstairs together, Vanya is holding a large hardback book and Klaus is just angry. Whoever broke in is going deal with a sleep deprived, angry Klaus.

Not a good combo.

They get to the bottom of the stairs and there's no one there, but a window is broken. They keep creeping along and see three men in the lounge room rummaging through the bookcase, guns in their arms.

Klaus growls and steps into the room, alerting the men. They turn towards them and start shooting. Vanya grabs him and pulls him behind the couch, thankful that neither got hit. She makes wild hand gestures to him, and he just nods, not knowing what they mean, but he'll figure it out.

She jumps out and smacks the guy in the back of the head with her giant book, he goes down. Klaus curses and runs out, taking the heat off of Vanya. They shoot at him but he manages to dodge them and jumps onto one of the guy's back. He grabs the gun and smacks it into the guy's face, knocking him off balance. He puts the man in a headlock and they go down.

He takes the gun from the unconscious man and points it at the third man's back. He sees the man take aim at Vanya and- Klaus shoot him. Several times in the back.

The guy goes down and Vanya turns around with wide eyes to see Klaus staring down at the dead man with downright  _murderous_ eyes. "Don't touch my sister, asshole." He hisses, knowing damn well that he can't hear him (or anyone) anymore.

Vanya takes a shaky breath, and Klaus looks over at her. He throws down the gun and kneels beside his sister. "Are you okay?" He asks, the softness in his voice is comforting. She nods shakily and he helps her stand up.

She didn't have to go through this every week, she's in shock. He takes her away from the dead and unconscious guys. Reginald comes out of his room and looks them up and down, seeing the blood on Vanya.

"Is it handled?" He asks Klaus, and the latter nods once. "Good, take her upstairs." He nods again and takes Vanya away from the scene of the crime. Reginald takes out his phone, and then they don't see him. He takes her to the bathroom and washes the blood off of her face and clothing. He gives her some spare clothing to change into, and closes his eyes, but stays as a crutch for her to lean on as she dresses.

Once she's done, she swallows and whispers, "Y-you.. you killed him." 

Klaus nods softly, dabbing her cheek with a wet cloth.

"He's.. dead."

He nods again.

"Do you care?" She asks, not angry, just curious.

Klaus stops dabbing her cheek, his eyes become focused and angry. "He was going to kill you." He growls.

"Do you care that he died?" She repeats.

He shakes his head. "It was you or him. I made a choice, I'm not gonna lose any sleep over it." She nods and then pulls him into a hug. She breaks down into sobs and Klaus comforts her with gentle hugs and soft words. "You're okay, it's just the shock. Happens to everyone, you're alright." He murmurs, petting her hair.

He vows. No one will ever hurt his sister again.


	4. And If They Stand Against You, Show Them No Mercy.

Many,  _many,_ years later, Five is back, and Ben is still dead but now Klaus can see him cause guess what- he's two days sober!

Klaus enters the foyer, he'd just visited Allison although she's asleep, and sees Luther hold his arms out for Vanya to hug him.

But there's something off about it. He's not doing it to comfort her, his eyes are hard, angry, and his jaw is clenched. Klaus steps forward and Vanya looks over at him, she's been crying and looks almost.. afraid at him. He reaches out one hand to her, his palm open and he gestures her to come over to him. She sniffs and quickly makes her way over to him, and slots herself into his arms.

Klaus glares at Luther and hugs her close to him, cradling the back of her head.

"Klaus," Luther starts, taking note of the snarl on his brother's lips. "She needs to come with me downstairs."

"She's not going  _anywhere._ " He growls, taking a step back with Vanya. Diego steps into the room and looks between them, confused.

Luther frowns and tries to step closer. Klaus pulls Vanya behind him protectively.

Pogo enters the room. "Master Klaus? Master Luther? What is going on here?" He questions, tapping his cane against the floor. Luther looks at him and then back at Klaus.

"Vanya needs to go downstairs. It's not safe for her to be out here." Luther coerces.

Klaus laughs angrily. "Not safe? What about her is not safe?" He questions, keeping a firm grip on her hand.

"She almost killed Allison-" Vanya looks down, tears falling from her eyes.

"Sure, but didn't Diego almost kill me when he figured out his power and couldn't control it?" He asks, barely sparing a glance over at his other brother. 

Luther shakes his head. "This is different-"

" _How?_ How is this different at all?" Klaus stands up straight and glares at their eldest. "You're not touching her, and you sure as  _hell_ aren't taking her- downstairs-"

"There's a room down there where she'll be safe-" Luther tries to convince him but Klaus just yells angrily.

"A  _room?_ You mean a prison! I know our father, Luther, and if he has a 'room' set up for her, then it's not good!" He screams, hatred overcoming his senses. Hatred for his father, hatred for his _brother_.

"You need to calm down-"

" _Don't tell me to calm down-_ " His hands are glowing bright blue, so many ghosts stand around them. Ben shines brightest of them all, he stands protectively in front of Klaus. " _You're not touching my sister._ " His voice echoes, and the ghosts repeat his words, making it sound so. Damn. Loud.

Luther grabs his ears, even Ben spoke with him, glaring at his younger brother. Diego grabs at his ears and so does Pogo.

Then, as quickly as it started, it's ended.

Ben and the other ghosts have disappeared and Klaus stands there, an empty, terrifying look in his eyes.

"And if you even think of touching her," He whispers coldly into the near-silent room. "I'll  _kill_ you."

**Author's Note:**

> [My Tumblr!](https://holykingwasteland.tumblr.com/)


End file.
